


I see you

by Soulpeace



Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: Friendship, Gen, M/M, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-05-22
Packaged: 2018-03-31 18:30:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3988330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soulpeace/pseuds/Soulpeace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yuzuru was always watching.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I see you

It was a bad habit, and he knew it, but he couldn’t help it. He was a visual learner, so watching was what he had to do from an early age if he wanted to progress.

Even nowadays, when Brian wanted to teach him something, or show him the bad posture that lead to a fall on one of his jumps, they had to film it over and over again, until they got one good jump and one bad jump, so Yuzuru could see the difference with his own eyes.

Once that done, somehow it got translated in his brain, and he was finally able to adjust his posture, or his step, or whatever was wrong. It worked for him, and once Brian discovered it, he’d been using it almost daily in their training. That was something Yuzuru liked a lot about Brian. The way that he adapted his methods to Yuzuru’s own ways. And he did it for every skater he coached, that’s probably why his training was working so well.

Lately, though, watching has been hindering Yuzuru more than it has been helping him. He was watching the other skaters during training, he was watching the rest of the competitors during practice and during the warming-up. It was making him lose his focus.

It was also mixing his brain up. This morning, he had almost skated Javier’s routine when the Figaro music had started.

The problem with watching Javier’s program over and over again is that he learned it. He learned it and he could see perfectly where and how things should be changed. He was no choreographer, but there was something there, that made him thinks maybe he could be, in the future, trainer and choreographer… Who knows, it was far away.

Still, this was the reason why Yuzuru asked for the keys to the rink and obtained the blessing of Brian to skate all night if he needed to. Yuzuru had told Brian about his problem, of course. He had to after his second day of not being focused on his training at all. And it was Brian who told him that maybe he just needed to get it out of his system. Maybe skating the whole program would help. In any case, it wasn’t a stupid idea, and at this point, Yuzuru would have tried pretty much anything to be able to focus on his own training again.

The rink felt a bit eerie, almost like a competition rink with only the ice in the light. It was a completely different mood from the usually cheerful atmosphere during training.

Yuzuru slipped into his skating boots and turned Javier’s music on, on the stereo at the side of the rink. The music from Rossini filled the silence, and in his mind’s eye, Yuzuru could see Javier skating to it. Following what he saw, he started skating, skipping the jumps so he could get the rhythm of the program into his legs first.

Yes, here, the little flourish with the hands that Javier loved to do and which always made Yuzuru smile when he saw it. And here, the way he shared the moment with the public, like a joke being told to a friend.

Yuzuru skated to the music until he could feel it in his muscles, and the next time it started over again, he added the jumps.

Once that was done, he began to build onto what was there with his own way of skating. Here, he could change the speed of his skating so he’d be more in time with the music for his next jump. There, just a couple more quick steps to bring in more points on the second note. Here, a pause, short, but enough to mark a change, enough to capture the attention. And here, a shorter entry into the jump, once again gaining a few points.

Yuzuru heard Javier before he saw him. He stopped skating. Standing in the middle of the rink, he could only hear Javier’s voice from the side of the rink, in the darkness.

“Are you… Are you skating *my* program?” He asked. There was disbelief in his voice, mostly, but Yuzuru knew Javier well enough to hear the fear of betrayal underneath. The only other time he had heard that tone in Javier’s voice was when the Spaniard shared his training history with Yuzuru. When he spoke about his former coach.

Hearing it directed at himself made Yuzuru want to vomit. He hadn’t thought he was doing something wrong per se, but he could see why Javier, with his past, would assume such a thing.

Yuzuru sent a silent prayer to any probable god of language, so that his English would not fail him at that very moment. Flustered was not a good start for his brain, but at least Javier was usually able to comprehend him even at his worst.

“No, Javi, no. I only skate! I’m not copy!” Great, perfect, this was one of these moment where Yuzuru wished Javier could speak Japanese, or he could speak Spanish. He was bad enough at it when he was calm, but when his brain was trying to come up with an explanation, it was like he kept forgetting even the easiest words.

Javier left the shadow and stepped on the ice, he had his skating boots on.

“Javi,” Yuzuru tried again, “I just skate, to get out my head, I never try to steal from you, never!”. This was not working at all, Yuzuru had never hated English more than at this very moment. How could he even try to explain everything to his friend when he couldn’t find the words he wanted to use?

Panic and frustration welled up in him equally, and then Javier was there in front of him, a smile on his face and a hand on Yuzuru’s shoulder. There was not even a hint of betrayal when he spoke next.

“I know. Brian told me. He told me I should come and watch, maybe get a few ideas out of you.” The more Javier was talking, the more Yuzuru could feel the knot in his chest untying.

“That last run, I liked a couple of the changes you made. Not the first one before the jump, because, come on, only you can do that before a jump, I’m only human! But the rest, I wouldn’t mind if you showed it to me again.” Javier’s hand climbed from Yuzuru’s shoulder to the side of his face in a familiar caress.

All the tension Yuzuru had in him since he had first heard Javier dissipated, and with a sob, he took a step closer to the other man and folded himself against his body. Javier’s arms came around him as they always did, as Yuzuru knew they would.

“I would never think that you would steal from me, Yuzu. Never you.” Javier’s voice, with his warm spanish accent, was always the best at calming Yuzuru’s nerves. Already he could feel that his breathing had come back to normal, and if his heartbeat was still a bit faster than usual, well, maybe it was because he really enjoyed being in those arms.

Yuzuru let go first, and took Javier by the hand.

“Here, you skate and I show you what you can add, for more points.” Yuzuru explained.

The music started again, and Yuzuru pointed here, pointed there, explaining where and how he’d change something. Javier didn’t always agree, because he was not Yuzu, and some of these changes were pure Yuzu, they just wouldn’t look right on him. On some other changes, he thought it was a brilliant idea, and he noted them down; unlike Yuzuru, Javier needed things to be on paper to remember them.

An hour later, both skaters were exhausted, but Javier had a nicely enhanced routine, that, if executed well, should win him a few precious extra points.

As they exited the rink, Javier asked : “Aren’t you scared I’m going to beat you with these changes?”

Yuzuru sat on a bench and bent in half to unlace his skating boots. He raised his head just enough for Javier to see his smile.

“I’m no fear,” Yuzuru said, “I want you to be best, I can be best too, and the best best one win.” Javier laughed with his head thrown back, and it made Yuzuru laugh too. It didn’t matter if his English wasn’t great after all, because Javier always understood him somehow.

“Want to go grab a bite?” Javier asked as Yuzuru turned all the lights off and locked the rink.

“Yes, but you come home, my mother made curry. Enough for you too.” Yuzuru laughed again at Javier’s exaggerated surprised and happy face.

“I’m being invited to eat Mama Hanyu’s curry? That’s like becoming part of the family!”

Yuzuru took Javier’s hand in his as they walked toward his house. “You’re my dear friend. You _are_ part of my family.”

The feeling of gratitude swelled up in Yuzuru, yes, he was lucky to have found this man, here in Toronto. Both of them far away from home, supposed to be rivals at best, enemies at worst, and yet, here they were, walking hand in hand, sharing stupid jokes and trying to make each other better, in every way possible.


End file.
